Promise of Eternity
by ShinyCDiver
Summary: AU. Honoka is a third year student at Otonokizaka Academy, and she's quite excited. A student is transferring into her class; isn't it something exciting? But with weird dreams of a girl trapped in a cycle of rebirth and death at the age of eighteen-a year older than she is currently- and an immortal maiden, will Honoka be able to understand a myth no one else knows?
1. Chapter 1

**I felt like the amount of HonoMaki was depleting lately and thus came up with this kinda weird but not really story idea.**

 **Originally, I was going to make this an original story, but no matter how I worked at the characters, they just wouldn't fit. Fastest fix? Put Honoka and Maki in the place of the characters and it all fell into place.**

 **Some things may seem OOC. Please bear with me for now; their characters will return to what they're supposed to be in later chapters.**

 **Also I made Eri Honoka's older sister.**

 **And Honoka, Umi, and Kotori are third years. (Eri's in college!)**

 **On top of that, Maki transfers into their class.**

 **It's an AU, but I mixed up their roles and ages.**

 **I don't own Love Live.**

* * *

 _A long, long time ago, before the feudal system even found its beginning in Japanese culture, there lived two maidens. They were always together, and through childhood friendship and innocence, promised each other that the day would come when they could be joined just as their parents were. It was inevitable, then, that they would fall in love with one another. But, as their village would not permit their romance to blossom, it was doomed to wither had a goddess not taken pity on them. She offered the two maidens a wish that she would grant for them. One maiden wished for an eternity with which she could spend with her love. The other maiden wished for rebirth in a time when their love would be allowed._

"And then the goddess smited both of them with one fell swoop!" Honoka cheered, interrupting the tale her older sister was telling.

"I didn't get there yet, Honoka. Didn't I keep telling you not to interrupt the story?"

"Well, sorry, but I've heard it so many times that it's boring!" She failed to understand why her older sister went along with the puppet show her friend always did at their shop. Sure, it entertained the children that came, but what good came out of telling a tale that was so old? Besides, it wasn't like such relationships were outlawed anymore. Her older sister sighed.

"Isn't it time for you to go to school? You were so excited yesterday about the transfer student arriving."

"Oh, right! Thanks for reminding me, Eri-nee! See ya later!" And she was off, sprinting down the sidewalk to the school that stood high atop a hill, Otonokizaka Academy.

It wasn't often that a transfer student transferred in a couple months into the school year, let alone during the third year of high school. Ever since her friend's mom let her know about it, the subject became the talk of the school. Everyone from first to third year had made speculations about the personality and looks of the transfer student, though the excitement had died down in the lower grades. "Kotori-chan!"

"Good morning, Honoka-chan!" Honoka looked around her classroom, wondering if an extra desk had appeared overnight. "Um...what's wrong?"

"Your mom says she's transferring her into our class, right? Do you see an extra desk!?" Kotori looked around, then shrugged.

"You can't even tell if a notebook is missing from your bag. How do you expect to notice an extra desk?" Umi asked, joining her two friends at Kotori's desk.

"Good morning to you too, Umi-chan. And a book and a desk are totally different things! For one, a desk is larger and two, I don't carry a desk between my home and school!" The mental image of Honoka struggling to lift one of the desks down the staircase in front of the school was enough to make Umi stifle a laugh. "Stop thinking about it!"

"Okay, okay." Umi managed to calm herself down, though she was pretty sure the image would come up again later. "But there is one extra desk. I counted them."

"Really? Awesome! I can't wait until our transfer student comes in!" Honoka looked to the front of the classroom; their teacher had just come in. "Oh, but I guess I have to wait." She made her way to the back of the classroom, where her seat was. Right by the window so she could look outside when she got bored. As the rest of her classmates settled down, she realized she had taken the wrong seat. Her seat would be the one in front of her, but she was sure no one would notice. She rather liked being at the very back of the class, and left the seat in front of her empty.

The door slid open, and the headmistress-though Honoka preferred to call her Kotori's mom-walked in. Their homeroom teacher stepped aside to make room for her. "Ahem, I'm sure you all know by now," Honoka wasn't sure if Kotori's mom was giving her a look. "-we have a new student joining us today. Come in, Nishikino-san." There was a pause, and then the transfer student stepped in.

She was beautiful. Absolutely breath-taking, at least to Honoka's eyes. Her long red hair-stretching all the way down to her hips-complemented the color of her eyes with unearthly perfection. Just gazing at her made her heart pound and her mind blank, as if she had gone into autopilot mode, like she normally did when her parents made her do chores.

"Yes, Kousaka-san?" The words brought her back to her senses. When had she gotten out of her seat? She didn't know that, let alone how she ended up directly in front of the transfer student. And then the headmistress and her homeroom teacher was in front of her face, ending the spell that had brought her up.

"I-um...how do I-" Honoka backed away, laughing nervously. She turned tail and fled back to her seat amidst stares from her classmates. Once there, she buried her face in her hands, feeling the heat already start to rise up. She hadn't gotten this embarrassed by something in a long time.

"...Please introduce yourself." She peered through her fingers; the transfer student hadn't even been fazed by her sudden and, quite random, approach. Honoka still didn't know what made her go up. Her heart still pounded when she looked at the new student, but she didn't get the same mental silence as she had earlier.

"Nishikino Maki. Pleased to meet you." Her voice. Even her voice was hypnotizing her; she could feel her mind going blank and slapped herself as hard as she could. The pain made her focus, although she was getting more stares again. The two adults were staring at her again, and her cheek throbbed with the force she had put behind it.

"Would you like to see the nurse, Kousaka-san?" Honoka shook her head. She'd already made more of a fool of herself than normal, and going to the nurse seemed like an option only a coward would make. She'd own up to her actions, even if she still didn't understand them herself. "Then, Nishikino-san. Please take the empty seat in front of Kousaka-san. I would ask her to raise her hand, but I trust that you know who she is?" Maki nodded and made her way past the desks. Honoka held her throbbing cheek, reminding herself of the pain so she wouldn't lose to whatever was making her mind go blank. It did nothing to stop the pounding in her chest, that grew louder the closer that Maki came. The transfer student took the seat in front of her, and her heartbeat quieted. Honoka released the breath she didn't even know she had been holding.

"Okay, Honoka, what the heck happened? I was sure even you wouldn't do something like that." Umi questioned her, but the only thing Honoka could think about was why she was doing it right in earshot of the transfer student. Maki stood up and left the classroom.

"Look, I don't know if you'd believe me, but you've got to. I don't know what happened. I just saw her, and my body moved like it was on auto mode." Honoka described the way her heart pounded and how she could feel her mind slipping when she looked Maki in the eye. "Maybe there is something wrong with me. I should've gone to the nurse."

"No, that was your normal amount of stupid." Honoka glared at Umi; her friend shrugged in response. "I'm not saying you normally do that, but it's within range of stupid things you normally do."

"I don't think that's helping, Umi-chan…" Kotori fretted; her mother was definitely going to give Honoka a lecture the next time her friend came over regarding her reaction to the transfer student. She didn't think Honoka was lying, but there was no way she would be able to convey that to her mother.

"I already know I'm an idiot. I wanted to at least seem cool to someone-that's why I was so excited for the transfer student to come! But I bet she thinks I'm a weirdo now too…" Honoka sighed and got up from her seat.

"Where are you going? Break's almost over." Umi called after her.

"To the nurse's office. Someone take notes for me." She walked out of the classroom and slid the door shut behind her.

The infirmary was empty when she got there, but Honoka didn't feel like going back to her class. She let herself in and took one of the beds, planning to take a nap. She would probably feel better afterwards, if she just slept it off.

" _What have you done?!"_ Honoka was confused for a bit. Then she came to the realization that she was dreaming and decided to watch the scene unfolding in front of her. A young woman in a rather drab kimono knelt, clutching at scraps of cloth. A cloth covered her head and face but she looked like she was crying.

" _I have granted your partner's wish along with your own."_ The other speaker was a woman with a sort-of glow to her. She shone brightly enough that Honoka's eyes hurt a bit when she looked directly at her. Honoka decided to focus on the young woman in the drab kimono for the sake of her eyesight.

" _You didn't tell us that to do so would mean death! If I had known, I would have never agreed to this!"_ Honoka pieced together their conversation along with the scraps of kimono that the young woman was holding to mean that someone had died in the making of the 'wish'. It was starting to sound awfully familiar to her.

" _Not death. Rebirth. Your partner has been released from the destined path of all humans: to face the judge at the end of their life. She will be reborn soon, but unless you manage to find her, she will die at this age, only to be reborn once again as a babe."_

" _How? How can I find her? I am human, and I cannot leave my village to search the world for her."_

" _You are not human, my child. The wish that was granted gave you the ability to transcend humanity. You will know pain, hunger, and thirst, but you will never know death. Your love is entering the world once more now. Go, find her."_ The young woman looked up at the goddess, then turned and fled the area, the head cloth flying away. Honoka gasped loudly, for her hair was…

"Wake up, Honoka-chan!" She was startled so badly that she fell off the other side of the bed, hitting her head against the table as she fell. Groaning, Honoka pulled herself back up.

"It's lunch time, so we bought bread from the school store and came to see you. Did you really just come here to take a nap?" Umi placed the plastic bag on the infirmary bed between herself and Honoka. The ginger took it, looking through the bag and organizing the bread based on how much she liked it. And then she had to quickly shuffle the bread back into the bag when the nurse's assistant made them leave.

"I didn't but there was no one there so I decided to use a bed." Honoka explained, taking a huge bite of the melon bun. The trio had moved to the courtyard, where they sat in a circle on the grass.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Kotori asked innocently.

"Why?"

"You looked like you were having troubled thoughts, so Kotori woke you up as quickly as she could." Umi informed her.

"That explains the screaming." Honoka was reminded of the rude awakening she received.

"What did you dream about? Monsters under the bed?" Kotori pressed on with her questions.

"No, nothing as silly as that. Let's see…" Honoka tried to remember, but like before-when she saw Maki for the first time-her mind drew a blank. It felt like there was just a blank region where the memory of that dream should have been. "Huh...that's weird. I can't remember. Even though I can remember all my other dreams…"

"Now if you could only remember what books to take home for homework." Honoka scowled at Umi. She could feel that there was something important within that dream that she couldn't recall, an important detail that had something to do with-

"Hair!" Both of her friends looked at her.

"What?"

"Hair. Her hair was red...Ahh...it's no use. I can't remember it!" Honoka stuffed the rest of her bread into her mouth and chewed it, irritated with herself.

"You mean the transfer student? Her hair's red." Umi questioned.

"No, not her! I mean, it might be her, but I'm not sure! The one time I need my dream to be remembered and it's gone!" The bell chimed, signalling the end of lunch. Honoka crumpled up the empty wrappers and put the ball into the trash can.

"Oi, Honoka, where are you going?"

"Back to the nurse's office to sleep! I bet I can remember my dream if it wasn't interrupted!"

Honoka scowled at the back of the transfer student's head. Umi had not let her go back to the infirmary, insisting instead that she return to class and take notes on her own. All she could get from her memory was 'red hair' and that wasn't an uncommon trait. Maki's hair was red, and it was long. Probably would be smooth and nice to touch, though Honoka wouldn't dare do something like that so soon. If they became friends first, then she would be able to do things like style her hair. But they wouldn't become friends, because Maki most definitely thought of her as weird after the way she rushed up to the front.

Her older sister and her friend were still doing the puppet show when she returned from school, though to a new group of children.

"The goddess glowed brightly, summoning a wave of power that would destroy any living being in her presence." Her sister lowered one of the puppets, replacing it with a gray one that signified that character was now dead. "Only one of the lovers survived the blast with the gift that the goddess had bestowed on them. The maiden that died was destined to be reborn, only to die once more when she reached the age of eighteen. The maiden that lived continues to live even now, for her life was made never-ending until she can find her lover in a time when their romance can blossom. The end." The children clapped dutifully as their parents led them out of the store.

"Yo, Honoka-chan! Back from school?"

"Yeah. School was boring-I took a nap in the nurse's office!" Her sister's friend gave her a high five.

"Nozomi! Don't keep telling Honoka that it's fine to do things like that!" Eri scolded, already putting away the puppets and the stage until they would be pulled out again the next day.

"Hey, I sat on the roof all the time and look where I am now!"

"Sitting on the floor of a bakery, reciting old tales for children to enjoy."

"Exactly, Eri-chi! It's not so bad, is it?" Honoka left them to bicker amongst themselves. They never had a serious fight before, and she didn't think they would any time soon. She headed to her room and dropped her school bag on the floor next to her desk. The relationship between Eri and Nozomi would be best described as close friends, though she suspected there was something more to their relationship. Not that she'd be able to confirm it-Eri moving out to college meant that there was no room for her to snoop through anymore.

"She should just live here than at the dorm." Eri spent most of her free time near the area of her home anyway, mainly because Nozomi chose not to dorm. So in a way, she still got to have her sister around because of her sister's friend. Though she still couldn't snoop through her bedroom. At any rate, Honoka didn't want to think about her day so far. It had been weird, far too weird for even her. Perhaps it would be better if she just took another nap.

* * *

 **No such tale exists (or maybe it does. I didn't look it up.)**

 **Maki only got to say one line in this whole chapter even though it's supposed to be HonoMaki.**

 **Yes, Maki has long hair. Reason for that will be in a different chapter.**

 **Please tell me if you enjoyed this chapter or not! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

Instajolteon: Thank you! :D

iamrailgun.20: Maki with her current hair style is cute, but I think having long hair would make her more beautiful. That's just my opinion tho.

chi2lyn: Yeah, it would be boring if it was just as simple as Honoka and Maki met and fell in love. That's why I gave some more interesting character settings to the other girls that appear in this.

 **I'm not sure if Nico, Hanayo, and Rin will show up in this story. Well, Nico might. Maybe.**

 **I should really plan these out more. :3**

* * *

"I got it!" Honoka shouted, getting the attention of her two friends. They were all sitting in her bedroom, trying to get some studying in before the test that would take place the next day. It was mostly for Honoka's sake though; Kotori and Umi were generally on top of their studies.

"What? The answer to the problem you've been staring at for the last ten minutes?" Umi walked over to the ginger. The space beneath the math problem was still blank.

"No, not that! I was thinking about Nishikino-san! She must be a witch-ow!" Honoka winced as Umi smacked her over the head with her rolled up notebook. "That hurts, Umi-chan!"

"You should be studying, not making up weird theories about our classmates!" Umi retorted, forcing Honoka to look at the study guide she had made for her. "You're not even halfway through with the exercises I outlined for you to do!"

"But they're hard! And it's not a weird theory! I really think she is a witch!" Honoka was prepared for the next round of notebook beating and blocked the attack with her arm. "How else do you explain why I suddenly got out of my seat?! I didn't even know I was doing anything!"

"Hey, what's going on? Why're you all arguing?" The three high school students turned to the doorway. Her older sister's friend had come over to visit again.

"Umi-chan won't believe me but Nishikino-san, the transfer student, is a witch!" Honoka crossed the room to Nozomi and gave her a hug. "You believe me, right?"

"Witches don't exist anyway! They're just like all the other myths, made to scare little children. None of those myths are real!" Nozomi detached herself from Honoka without giving either girl an immediate answer. Umi gulped, backing up slightly.

"I exist, don't I?" Nozomi asked her quietly. Umi nodded, seeing as there was no other action for her to do except agree. "You can prove I exist, because I am standing right here in front of you. Can you prove I exist to someone who has never seen me? With nothing more than words that you speak? No pictures, or videos."

"N-No…"

"Then you can't say that witches don't exist, or that myths aren't real. You have no proof for them, but neither do you have proof against them. Okay, Umi-chan?" Nozomi reached out and ruffled the bluenette's hair.

"Nozomi, could you not bother my sister when she's trying to 'study'?"

"Oops, I got caught!~ See you later, Umi-chan, Kotori-chan, Honoka-chan~" The room was a lot quieter once the college student left.

"So...Nishikino-san is a witch?"

"You don't have any proof of that. Besides, just finish your studying." Umi directed Honoka back to her desk so she could once again stare at the unfinished problem.

* * *

"Did she see you?" Nozomi asked Eri, now that they were safely in the storage space that used to be Eri's room. Eri shook her head.

"I don't think so. But it's hard to tell when you're dealing with someone like her." Eri sighed, leaning back against the cardboard boxes. "This isn't my job, you know. I'm supposed to be guiding people to judgement, not sticking around here with you."

"But you're fine with it and so is your boss. There's nothing wrong." Nozomi reminded her, her voice taking a light and teasing tone. "So she finally managed to track her down."

"It didn't seem that way. I think it's more of a coincidence that she ended up here." Eri glared at Nozomi, though her heart wasn't into it. "You could sense where both of them are; why didn't you lend a hand? You were supposed to help them, weren't you?" If Nozomi had just done that, Eri would no longer have to watch over her.

"Ah, but I cannot directly interfere with them. What I did before was an accident-I got scolded for it afterwards. It was quite scary, Eri-chi. I can only watch over them now until they make their decision together. However, if what you say is true, then their cycle may never end." Nozomi looked at Eri; the blonde seemed to be tired. Whether she was tired because of college or tired because of her job, Nozomi could not tell. "Can I still trust you to do what you need when the time comes?" Eri sighed again and knelt before Nozomi, bowing to her.

"Of course you can. I've never let you down before. If the circumstances of her curse are not met by the predestined time, then I will finish her myself." The blonde looked up. "And then stage my own demise so that I may move on with you. Does this satisfy you?"

"Yes, though I do hope that they manage to fulfill those circumstances this time around. They are quite the pitiful pair, don't you agree?" 'It was you who made them that way, though…' Eri did not let that thought escape her mouth. "Tell me more about her."

"As you wish."

* * *

"Um!" It was no good; Honoka's heart started pounding as soon as Maki did so much as look at her. 'Invite her over for snacks', Nozomi had told her. She couldn't argue with the older girl's reasoning; being a transfer student in a new place was going to be lonely. She just didn't understand why she should be the one to bring it up if she couldn't even look at her classmate without her mind going blank.

"What is it...Kousaka-san?" The sound of her surname in the transfer student's voice was oddly hypnotic.

"I-If you're not busy, w-w-would you like to c-come over to m-my house?!" Honoka had to turn her head away from Maki just to stammer the question out, and she was still embarrassed by it. Her embarrassment doubled since they were in the classroom and in the view of all of their classmates. Her face was probably red, redder than Maki's hair.

"...Sure." Maki stared at her; Honoka was unable to read any expression in the other girl's eyes. "When? Afterschool?"

"Y-Yeah." Honoka breathed a sigh of relief when Maki nodded in response and turned away. The transfer student left the classroom again; the teachers were always calling her away during the breaks to figure out what she needed catching up on.

"Maybe she is a witch." Umi muttered in Honoka's ear, making the ginger jump. "There's usually no way you'd get that red from just asking a classmate to come over."

"See?! There's something definitely off with that!" Her friend still didn't look completely convinced on Honoka's point. Then again, Umi was raised to be more logical; things that were beyond the comprehension of science-such as ghosts-scared her. Honoka had been raised partially on Nozomi's myths. When she was younger, she had believed that the myths her sister's friend told her were facts. She was older now, and knew that there was no way goddesses, immortals, or any other characters Nozomi spoke of existed without it causing an uproar in the science community.

"So, why'd you both decide to come along too?" Umi and Kotori looked at each other, then back at Honoka, and shrugged.

"It'd be a good idea for the four of us to study together." Umi suggested, making Honoka groan.

"I would also like to get to know Nishikino-san more." Kotori said, smiling at the transfer student that had been walking silently beside them the entire journey from school. If Maki noticed, she did not respond, and Kotori's smile faltered.

"That's great and all-except the studying part-but don't you think it'd get crowded? My room isn't that big." Honoka led them around the back of her family's store to the house's entrance.

"There's only four of us. Besides, you need to study if you want to get accepted into a good college. Nishikino-san, how were your scores?" Umi asked, looking at the redhead.

"High nineties...and hundreds." Honoka stared; her own scores never got higher than an eighty at best. She usually averaged around the sixties to seventies range. Even Umi looked impressed, though then again, none of them had any proof.

"Honoka-chan, the door." Kotori nudged her friend gently once a bit of time had passed. Honoka fumbled with her keys, putting the correct one into the lock just as the door slid open.

"Oh, Honoka. Back from school?" Her sister looked past her at the three girls behind her. "Umi and Kotori too. And…" Honoka wasn't sure if she imagined it, but Eri's gaze changed slightly. "...who's your new friend?"

"T-This is Nishikino-san! The transfer student!" Maki dipped her head politely. "Nishikino-san, this is my sister!" Eri nodded as well. Honoka looked at her sister-she couldn't look at Maki for obvious reasons-and wondered why her smile seemed more forced than normal. "Is there something wrong, Eri-nee?"

"Huh? No, it's nothing." The moment passed; Eri's smile was more genuine now. Honoka felt relieved that there was nothing wrong. "I'll be in the store with Nozomi. If you need anything, just come and get us. You can all stay for dinner too." The blonde waved and walked off to the door that connected their home to the shop out front.

Honoka sank into her bed. "Ah~ So soft...this is just what I needed after a day at school…" She blinked drowsily, just about ready to fall asleep. That is, until Umi threw her (empty) pencil case at her head. "Stop hitting me with things, Umi-chan!"

"You invited people over; you could at least be a good host!" Honoka grumbled, burying her face in her pillow. A second pencil case found its target, eliciting another sharp yelp from the ginger. She reluctantly sat up, still hugging her pillow to her chest.

"I brought the refreshments!" Kotori announced, entering the room with a tray of tea and manjuu that she had found in the kitchen.

"You're even making Kotori bring up the snacks that you should have brought!" Kotori looked at her two friends, then started serving tea to the one person who wasn't bickering.

"Thank you." Maki took a manjuu and bit into it. "...It's good."

"That's my family's secret way of making manjuu! My dad puts his all into making them, you know!" Honoka explained, feeling somewhat proud of her family's shop.

"Why do you look so proud of it then? It's not like you made it." She threw the pillow at Umi's face, starting yet another one of their brawls while Kotori and Maki watched.

* * *

"What did you think of her? After meeting her today." Eri asked. She didn't have to worry about being overheard; they were not in the same space as her sister and her friends.

"It's almost as if she's forgotten. The flames of life that fuel all people are dim in her." Now it was Nozomi's turn to sigh. "Hers burned so brightly back then too…"

"I was tempted into causing an accident just so I could take that flame. But you put an end to that when you cursed the two of them. Now her fire is almost gone." Eri shrugged. "Can't blame her though. Forced to wander through ti-"

"I know! You don't have to rub it in my face every time we bring up the topic." Nozomi rubbed her temples, sighing loudly. "I didn't curse them intentionally! I was young, and naive, and I thought-"

"You thought you were granting their wishes." The purple-haired girl nodded. "They would have met again even if there was no divine intervention. My boss pays special attention to things like that, even though she probably shouldn't."

"You really like pointing out the obvious, don't you?"

"It's just my job. Now, put us back in the storage room so Honoka doesn't think us weird for spending so long in there."

* * *

 **I was going to make the story entirely from Honoka's POV, but then that would leave out a few details. So I added in some bits with just Nozomi and Eri talking to each other. Maki was also going to get a POV. However, she's supposed to be a mystery to Honoka, so I left it out. Here's what it would have looked like if any part of the story was told from her view.**

She went to school. It was rather boring. She went home.

 **Maki doesn't have much emotion or drive in this story. Therefore, she wouldn't be as good a mouthpiece as the other characters are.**

 **It's somewhat obvious what Honoka's, Maki's, and Nozomi's roles are in this story, right?**

 **If so, then what would that make Eri? :3**


	3. Chapter 3

chi2lyn: You know too much. Shh.

iamrailgun.20: It's not often that Honoka's a mess. :3 It's usually Maki who's a mess.

Celestial-princess: After all, you can't rush love. (Not that I know, anyway.)

 **Okay, I lied. Rin makes an appearance, starting this chapter.**

 **Also, Honoka doesn't get that much screentime this time around. (Honoka: But I'm the main character!) Shush. We get more focus on the supernatural side of the story in this chapter, so Honoka gets to know nothing.**

* * *

It had been a week since Maki transferred in and the weird pounding her chest that she got every time she saw the transfer student finally subsided. Honoka could look at Maki, and her chest wouldn't hurt. With this development, she decided to take Maki around the city for a tour, since no one else in the class had done so yet, and brought it up to the transfer student after class had ended for the day.

"S-S-So...wo-would-" Apparently her inability to speak in Maki's presence hadn't been cured yet. It was a good thing Maki was so patient with her; even Umi would have gotten tired and tried to guess what she was saying. She couldn't read any of Maki's emotions, but at least the redhead was still listening to her. "I-I was wondering...w-wo-would you want t-t-to go l-look around the city w-with me?" Internally, she did a fist pump at finally being able to complete her question.

"Okay. This weekend? At your house?" Honoka drew a blank; it must have showed on her face. "For meeting up with you. At your house?"

"Oh, yes! That works!" Maki nodded and packed up the rest of her school supplies. "S-See you tomorrow!" Honoka called after her classmate; Maki waved, and then she had gone. Honoka sighed, feeling much more at ease for some reason.

"How bold of you, Honoka." Umi said, leaning over the next desk over. "Asking the transfer student on a date within two weeks of her coming here."

"It's not a date!" Honoka retorted. "I just thought I'd show her around a bit, that's all. Anyone else would do the same."

"If you say so." Her friend did not look convinced but since she didn't push it any further, Honoka was content to leave the conversation where it was. A sudden movement outside their classroom caught her attention. "What's wrong?"

"...I thought I saw someone, but I guess I was wrong." Honoka turned back to her friends. "Want to stop at a burger place on the way home?"

"Ouch...even I can't stop a fall if it's so sudden…" Eri grumbled, rubbing her aching backside. Nozomi had sent her to talk to their new target, but her friend had clearly misjudged the height at which she would need to be at. "I can already see her excuse though…"

" _It's not my fault! The school is on a hill! I only put you a little bit higher than you were supposed to be! Besides, you can fly, can't you?!"_

Eri sighed and stood up, shaking the dust off of her clothes. She hoped no one had seen her fall down, though even if anyone had, they wouldn't have been able to comprehend it. Things such as her materializing one story above the ground was beyond normal human comprehension, and most would be forgotten. "Okay...so...where is my immortal child?" She saw Maki just as the girl was exiting through the school gates. "I could ask Nozomi to transport me again, but I think I'm better off just running after her." With that decision, she trotted off after the high school student.

Eri ducked behind the corner of the building when Maki turned around. She wasn't sure why she kept hiding every single time the girl looked in her direction, but she didn't feel like stopping any time soon. They were quite some distance away from the school already, so stepping out to confront the teenager wouldn't attract the attention of any other people. Since she also looked like a teenager-at the moment, anyway-it wouldn't cause any strange looks to be directed at them. But still-she dove into an alley as Maki once again looked behind her-it seemed fit to keep following her without getting noticed. Perhaps the part of her that was the human girl she possessed thought it was fun, but Eri would never know. Nor did she have time to think about it, when a previously undetected force knocked her over. "Oi, oi, shinigami. What do you think you're doing here nya?"

"N-Nekomata...there shouldn't be any youkai within this world anymore…" Had it been a normal human, Eri would have been able to elude their grasp by now. But the grinning orange-haired girl had her pinned not only in the mortal world, but in the spiritual one as well, making her escape a little more difficult. "But...you must be over-confident if you believe you can overpower me." She could feel the wooden staff under her hands and rolled over, swinging her scythe in a curved arc as she did so. The youkai hopped off, landing a short distance away.

"Be careful. You could seriously hurt someone nya! Specifically, me!"

"Youkai are not allowed in this world anymore. Either return to where you came from or cease to exist at my hand." Eri growled, a dark aura seeping into the air around them. She needed to bluff her way through this; the human girl she had put her soul into was not good at channeling her power. Too much, and she may end up killing her host before she needed to.

"Then Rin will fight and win nya! Rin won't let a stupid shinigami take away her most important person!" The girl charged; Eri readied her scythe to act as a block.

"Rin, stop." Both girls froze, and Eri made her weapon vanish once more into darkness. "I told you to stay at home, didn't I?" Now Maki had joined them in the alley, her gaze still as blank as it had been a few days prior, when Eri had first seen her.

"It's in my heart to wander! I'm a cat!" Rin protested, pouting. "Besides, this shinigami was stalking you for a while, so I took action! Aren't I a good guard cat?"

"Stalking?" Maki repeated, looking at Eri even though Rin was trying to get some affection out of her. "Why would a shinigami want to follow me? I'm not going to die."

"I was actually hoping to chat to you a bit about that. Then I got attacked by a stupid cat who doesn't know her owner is immortal." Call it petty, but Eri put extra emphasis on the adjective she used to describe Rin.

"She's not my cat." Maki corrected. "She's a stray that follows me around."

"How mean, Maki-chan! You give me food and a nice, warm bed! Of course I'd follow you!" Maki ignored her once again.

"You spied on me last week. I noticed. What do you want from me, shinigami? I can't give you my soul, if that's what you're looking for." Though any self-respecting shinigami wouldn't want her soul in its current condition, but Eri didn't tell her that. All she was supposed to do was find the immortal and keep her distracted until Nozomi saw fit to come. Hopefully it would be soon, since she didn't like being near a human she couldn't collect a soul from.

"Long time, no see, Maki-chan." Nozomi greeted. "But why are we in an alley?" She had heard Eri's report and come, but she didn't expect them to be in such a weird place.

"Because that stupid nekomata attacked me. Can I take her soul?" Rin hissed at the idea, hiding behind Maki.

"Eri-chi, please refrain from things that can be considered murder." Nozomi said, glancing over just in case. Eri shrugged, making it clear that she wouldn't promise anything. "Maki-chan, how have you been?"

"Okay. What do you want from me?" Maki had gone on the defensive, though anyone other than them wouldn't have been able to tell since nothing about her appearance had changed.

"Why are you assuming that I want something from you? Can't I just want to see how you're doing?" Nozomi closed her eyes, using her ability to single out Maki's heart from the rest of the humans around them. Fear, resentment, and most of all, hatred raged in the teenager's heart.

"Oh~Her flames are rising again!" Eri commented. Normally, Nozomi would have silenced her friend for such an obvious comment, but she needed to be sure that Maki could still get affected by her own emotions.

"We're here to help you, Maki-chan." Nozomi said, trying to placate her.

"Like the last time you 'helped' me? No. I won't believe you." Maki turned away, grabbing Rin by the collar of her shirt as she did. "Just leave me alone."

"Come near Maki-chan again and I'll rip you both apart!" Rin shouted out as Maki dragged her away.

"And there she goes. Is it really okay, leaving her like that?" Eri asked, following Nozomi through the portal she opened.

"Yes. You have better vision than I do when it comes to seeing life. How did hers look?"

"Hm...well, it's not as bright as I like, but it was definitely brighter than when I last saw it. Seeing you was able to fan her life back up, but seeing Honoka did nothing? How does that work?"

"You're just a lowly death god, so I guess I shouldn't expect you to understand things like that." Eri scowled. "Humans react more to things they hate than things they love. If we are to ensure that this cycle will be the last, we need to make Maki-chan's emotions flare up enough for her to feel them, even if her hatred towards me is the only thing she can feel right now."

"Great. So now we just have to make her see you enough times to fan her hatred-and subsequently, her life force-so she can feel other things?"

"No, not just me. She'll associate you with me now, and she just might react to you as well."

"As if I didn't already get enough resentment from humans for doing my job. Ah, whatever. It's for them, after all."

* * *

Nozomi: Oh yeah. Honoka-chan and Maki-chan are going on a date tomorrow.

Eri: What?! I didn't hear about this?!

Nozomi: That's because you don't listen. And because-

Eri: I'm a lowly death god?

Nozomi: I was going to say an over-doting older sister but that works too.

Eri: Aahh...I'm going to have to warn Honoka about strange places...*not listening*

Nozomi: ...

 **Just putting it out there but since I made Rin-chan into a youkai, do you think Umi and Kotori should get bigger roles in the story? Besides just being Honoka's friends?**


	4. Chapter 4

**It has been a long time.**

* * *

Honoka checked herself in the mirror. "Too boring." She muttered to herself, dissatisfied with how she looked. Clothes lay strewn about on the floor of her bedroom from her attempts to pick a proper outfit to impress Maki. "No, I'm not trying to impress her! I'm just showing her around the city because I want to be a good friend to her! That's it!"

"Oi, Honoka, what are you yelling about so early in the morning?"

Honoka turned around sharply to face her older sister. "It's nothing, Eri-nee! And knock before you come in, please!"

"Why, so I don't see the mess you've made?" Eri asked, casting a glance about the messy room. "Also, if you're up, head down to the kitchen. Mom and Dad could use a hand."

"I'm going out with a friend soon! I already told them that!" Honoka retorted, checking herself in the mirror again. "Do I look lame wearing this?"

"I'm sure neither Umi nor Kotori will care what you're wearing." Eri said, yawning a bit. "Unless…" A sly smile made it onto the blonde's face. "Are you going out with that transfer student? What was her name again…Maki-chan?"

"It's not a date!" Honoka shouted, hurrying over to Eri to defend herself, her face beet-red.

"I never said it was!" Eri said with a laugh as she blocked her younger sister's pathetic attempts to attack her. "And you look fine. Don't freak about the date so much; I'm sure you'll impress her with your stunning personality." Eri gave Honoka a light shove, pushing her back into her own bedroom. "If she gets here before you're ready, I'll distract her with sweets until you decide your outfit impresses her, okay?"

"Eri-nee!" Honoka could hear her older sister laughing as Eri retreated back downstairs to the store. "It's not a date!"

* * *

Eri brought a small sampling of manjuu from the store into the living room, where she had asked Maki to stay. "Here. Some snacks while you wait."

"Thank you." Maki muttered. The redhead took one and started nibbling on it.

Eri sat down as well, pouring herself a cup of tea. She turned on the television and started watching the news. She kept an eye on the redhead, noting that the girl's gaze was just as empty as before. _It didn't work, Nozomi…_ Not that Eri particularly minded. She did like Maki to a certain degree. It would have been painful to be hated by one who once possessed a brilliant soul. "So you left that nekomata at home?" Eri asked, trying to strike up a conversation.

"Rin."

"What?" Eri stared blankly at the redhead.

"Her name is Rin. Not 'nekomata'." Maki said matter-of-factly, staring straight at Eri.

"Fine, Rin." Eri conceded the point, not wanting to start an argument with Honoka so close by. "You left her, right?"

"Who knows? She can do whatever she wants." The redhead said. "She's a free spirit, not like us."

"You mean me and you?" Eri asked.

"Me. You. Kousaka-san. That goddess."

"Nozomi."

"Hah?" Now it was Maki's turn to stare blankly, though her gaze had been pretty void of emotion the entire time.

"The 'goddess' has a name. Nozomi."

Maki sighed. "Fine, Nozomi. Anyway, none of us are free from the vicious cycle _she_ put us in. There's only a year of time left before it'll start over again-mmph!"

"Oh, quit your whining." Eri scolded after she stuffed Maki's mouth with another manjuu. There was a glimmer of irritation in the other girl's gaze as she tried to speak around the manjuu. "Here's an idea: you lightening up and hanging out with Honoka like you used to."

Maki chewed and swallowed the manjuu before speaking again. "And do what? If you don't remember, the last time we did anything together was centuries ago! There's nothing left of that time and there's nothing left of our relationship!"

Eri lowered her gaze into the spiritual realm again, wanting to see Maki's emotional state. She wasn't as good at reading human emotions as Nozomi was, but even she could see emotions when they were felt to such a high intensity. Maki radiated despair, and Eri almost wanted to give in to her desires to provide comfort to the redhead. But she held herself back. The one Maki needed was Honoka. They needed each other to break the cycle.

Speaking of Honoka…she was taking way too long to pick out an outfit.

"Excuse me." Eri said, getting to her feet. "I'm going to get Honoka for you."

"So our talk's over then?" Maki asked.

Eri could feel Maki's stare on her still, even without turning to confirm it. "Yes, for now. I'd be happy if you wanted to talk again, some other time." She left the living room, sliding the door shut behind her. She took a deep breath to calm down and to get herself back into playing the role of Honoka's older sister.

* * *

Honoka glanced at Maki as they walked down the sidewalks of Akihabara. She could only hoped that she didn't look too lame in comparison; Eri had practically kicked her out of the house before she could settle on an outfit.

"What is it, Kousaka-san?" Maki must have noticed her glances.

"I-It's nothing!" Honoka said automatically. She could already feel her body temperature sky-rocketing just from having her name called.

"Is that so?" Maki said.

The two walked in silence for a few minutes. Honoka didn't know what else to say, and was honestly just trying to calm her beating heart. She snuck another glance at Maki. The other girl was still stunningly beautiful and Honoka's sneaking glance turned into blatant staring pretty quickly. This time, though, Maki turned to meet Honoka's gaze. For a brief second, Honoka thought Maki looked depressed, though the minute expression faded so quickly she wasn't sure if she was just seeing things. "S-Say…" She stammered, trying to get herself out of the awkward situation she had just put them into. "Want to get something to eat? I-I heard there's a good café nearby…"

"…yeah, that sounds good." Maki said, slowing down and letting Honoka pass her. "Lead the way."

"Ah, okay…" Honoka could feel Maki's gaze on her as they continued walking.

* * *

Maki flipped through the menu. She didn't really need to eat to survive, but she might as well order something since she was in a café. It had been a while since she'd eaten anywhere outside of her home. Plus – she shot a glance at Honoka, who was absorbed in reading the menu and no longer paying attention to her – she probably could give more of an effort. Even if she didn't agree with that shinigami that the cycle could ever be broken, it had been many centuries since they had been together. _I may as well enjoy this year before the cycle begins again._ Maki thought as she set her menu down.

"Oh. Have you decided on something already, Nishikino-san?" Honoka asked. Her voice was comforting to hear, even though Honoka kept her eyes firmly fixed on the menu.

"There's too much to pick from. I want to hear what you recommend." Maki said. Though, to be completely honest, she had no idea what most of the menu items were. She'd spent most of her extremely long life staying away from other people, avoiding society as much as she could. At least, until she met Rin. Perhaps that was why she let the nekomata stick around for as long as she had. She mentally smacked herself, returning her attention to Honoka.

" – or the parfait, though…" Honoka trailed off as Maki met her gaze. The other girl was blushing, Maki could tell that much. "…it might be too sweet…"

"I'll try that then." Maki decided to take a chance. Smiling slightly, though she had no idea if she was even capable of smiling anymore, she said, "Honoka."

The effect was immediate, and almost too much for her to tolerate. Honoka had nearly fallen out of her chair. As it was, the orange-haired girl's face had gone completely red and she seemed to have stopped breathing.

"…" Was it worth calling her name a second time?

* * *

 **Will Maki call Honoka by name a second time?**

 **Find out next chapter!**

 **Also, if you enjoyed this, please leave a review. :)**


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